Sen. Feinstein Says She Won’t Step Down Before End of Term

Ranking member U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) looks on during the third day of Judge Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on Oct. 14, 2020. (Stefani Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images)

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said that she plans to finish out her remaining term in the U.S. Senate despite concerns over her advanced age.

Feinstein, 89, was asked whether she intended to finish out her term, which is set to expire in 2024, as she is now the oldest sitting U.S. senator.

“Yes, absolutely,” she replied. “There’s still two years, you know. A lot can happen in two years.”

Her office has reiterated her intent to stay on in the Senate, where she has served for around 30 years.

Feinstein’s expressed intention to stay on despite being nearly a nonagenarian comes as several younger lawmakers in the upper chamber—including Sens. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), 67, Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), 61, Rob Portman (R-Ohio), 66, and others—decided not to seek reelection in 2022.

Feinstein has also not ruled out running for reelection, despite being the oldest current U.S. senator, an accolade she received upon the death of Sen. Don Young (R-Alaska), who was older than Feinstein by only a few days. If she ran for reelection in 2024 and won, she would be 92 years old upon the sitting of the 119th Congress.

Concerns

Some critics have raised questions about her mental acuity.

While the California Democrat has made fewer, less well-publicized gaffes than President Joe Biden, one incident in November 2020 raised eyebrows.

During a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee at the time, Feinstein was questioning former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey.

Feinstein asked Dorsey whether Twitter was doing enough to combat “misinformation,” citing a Dec. 7 tweet by President Donald Trump saying he had won the presidential election.

Dorsey replied to the question, which Feinstein had read off of prepared notes. As he finished responding, Feinstein repeated the question word for word.

The event raised questions among some, including left-wing progressive outlets, because Feinstein is more susceptible to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease and dementia due to her advanced age.

Feinstein was first elected to the office in 1992.

In that time, she has also chaired the Senate Rules Committee, the Senate Intelligence Committee, and was the ranking member on the Senate Judiciary Committee during the 115th and 116th Congresses.

Feinstein’s declaration also comes after a major change of leadership in the House Democratic caucus.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), followed by House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), and Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) announced that they would not seek major leadership positions during the 118th Congress, making way for new, younger Democrats to take over.

As the most populous state in the union, California has the most representation in the lower chamber. As young Democrats seek to take over from the party’s old guard, it is likely that the primary battle will be a highly contested one when Feinstein leaves the upper chamber.

If Feinstein were to step down or die before the end of her term, the governor of California would need to assign a temporary replacement. Because the governor of California is Democrat Gavin Newsom, this would likely have no effect on the balance of power in the Senate, where Democrats will hold 51 seats to Republicans’ 49 during the 118th Congress.

California Governor Gavin Newsom discusses the state's plan for homelessness initiatives in Los Angeles, Calif., on Sept. 29, 2021. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Newsom, who earlier this year survived a recall effort, has already appointed one member to the Senate, Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), who replaced Vice President-elect Kamala Harris in the spot.

Under California law, the governor’s appointee, if they sought reelection, would be up for the next statewide election. In this case, if Feinstein stepped down and were replaced, her replacement would be up for election in November 2024.

Padilla on Nov. 8 won his bid to keep the seat he had been appointed to the previous year.